Sakura-chan's Homemade Meals
by HeavenStar2703
Summary: [NaruSaku] Because he had always wondered what her homemade meal would taste like, and he had pestered her enough about it. [Series of one-shot]
1. Morning Bento

**Sakura-chan's Homemade Meals**

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><p><em>1. Morning Bento<em>

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><p>It was an early winter morning when the sun was just coming when Naruto heard knocks on his door. At first, he decided to ignore it, hoping that it would go away. So, when the knocking became insistent, he groaned into his pillows and grudgingly rose from his cosy, warm bed. Dragging his feet towards the door, he inwardly grumbled at the unknown visitor's lack of tact. He was not a morning person, this was a fact well-known to all those in Konoha, even the ones whom he barely had any contact with.<p>

So it was truly a surprise when he saw it was his rosette-haired teammate, who knew this better than anyone, standing in front of his home, tapping her feet impatiently as she waited for him to come out.

"Here." A small box was unceremoniously thrust into his hand as soon as he emerged, before the door was even completely opened. Barely awake, Naruto almost missed and dropped the box.

"Sakura-chan, w-wha…?" He used his free hand to rub the sleepiness from his eyes, all the while staring at the little mysterious box in his hand. It was neatly wrapped and warm to the touch.

Wait, warm?

All his grogginess left him in an instant, and suddenly staring at the little box became the only thing he could do.

It was a bento box…

As he shifted the box in his hand, he could tell it was fully packed and it was neatly wrapped to prevent the heat from escaping in this cold weather, and now that he brought it closer to his face, he could smell mouthwatering scent emanating from it.

This wasn't a dream, was it? This… this couldn't be… his long coveted object of his dream of dreams Sakura-chan's homemade meal?

Granted, he had never had any meal made by her (didn't stop him from pestering her about it though), so he didn't know if it would taste as good as it smelled. But going by what she had made (mostly medicines), it didn't bode well. But that was all beside the point. The point was that Sakura, his hot-tempered, proud, tsundere (because he knew all along that she loved him despite her continual rejection of his always overly dramatic confession) teammate cooked for him! She handmade the bento for him!

Surely he must be dreaming? He pinched his own cheeks to test if he was awake.

Sure enough it hurt, so this must be real…

Finally he tore his gaze away from the seemingly unreal object in his hand to look at her. Because of the morning light shining directly into his eyes, he couldn't be sure if he was seeing things right, but he thought Sakura-chan was blushing as she looked away, arms folded in front of her.

"F- from your last physical check-up, you need more nutrients in your diet, so… I… ah… I'm just making sure you eat right!" She said, maybe with a little bit of defensiveness, or was that his imagination playing tricks on him? Wait, did she actually stutter? As he continued to stare at her speechlessly, Sakura seemed to become even more flustered. The pink on her cheeks seemed to intensify as she blurted out.

"Just make sure you eat everything, baka!"

With that she stormed off into the morning light, her deep red winter clothes billowing behind her in the cold breeze. He stared after her, mesmerized by the sight. His eyes never leaving her form until she disappeared in the throng of people that were starting to emerge below his home.

As he stood there at the door, in the cold winter morning, he couldn't really tell whether the warmth enveloping him was from the sun or from the heat of the bento in his hand.

When he finally made it back into his room, he gingerly placed the still warm bento box on the table. Slowly, he peeled the cloth wrapping off to reveal a pastel yellow box with a small green clover drawn on the lid. His grin (that he sported since the moment Sakura-chan hurriedly left) grew even wider. He eagerly snatched off the lid to see what was inside.

His mouth watered and he had to wipe the drool off as he saw rice cooked just perfectly with teriyaki chicken. On the side, he saw multi-colored vegetables. He scrunched his nose and poked them with chopsticks to find that they were softer than usual, then realized she, who knew how he desperately spent a large portion of his life avoiding his veggies, probably soft boiled them to take the smell he hated away and made it easier to wash them down.

His heart felt so warm, and something suspiciously like tear rose to his eyes and he couldn't stop smiling like an idiot. This was something he had dreamed of for so long. Gingerly, he picked up a baby carrot and popped it in his mouth. The smell didn't quite disappear altogether, but kami knew it was the most delicious thing he ever tasted.

For the first time in forever, he took his time eating his breakfast instead of sweeping everything into his mouth in less than five minutes. He did not finish until an hour and a half later. He didn't care that by the time he took the last bite, the meal was already cold in the winter air. He savored every mouthful as if it was his last, and didn't leave anything behind.

Not even the greens he fervently hated.

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><p><strong>Author's note<strong>

Thanks all for reading. This idea popped into my head when I was simultaneously looking through pictures of bento and tumblr pics of NaruSaku, and somehow the two got mixed together, resulting in a spurt of impulse that compelled me to write this out of my system.

The end of Naruto (chapter 700 in particular) left me feeling strange. I'm not unhappy, but nor am I satisfied with it. At the risk of being ostracized, I'll say that I support both NaruSaku and SasuSaku, or even better, NaruSakuSasu (in no particular order). To me, Team 7 is codependent on each other, and without one, the others aren't complete.

With the lack of NaruSaku action in the final chapter, I wanted to write something like this to satisfying my head-canon. I hope all who read will enjoy this little piece. I have definitely enjoyed writing it, and definitely want to do more.

Maybe a suggestion of what food Sakura-chan should cook for her Naruto? Maybe that will give me another the dose of impulse? What food would Naruto want to eat (or should) apart from ramen?


	2. Oshiruko

**Sakura-chan's Homemade Meals**

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><p><em>2. Oshiruko<em>

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><p>"C-C-Coold!" Sakura could hear his whining before Naruto even approached her door. The corner of her lips turned up slightly as she heard his loud, almost theatrical 'achoo' that followed quickly enough.<p>

She left the stove and went to her door, opened it only to have Naruto and the cold winter air rushing in through the door. She shivered as the cold breeze enclosed around her, and he fell face-first onto the floor from his own momentum as he was about to knock her door. Just as she knelt down and opened her mouth to ask him if he was alright, he looked up with the signature goofy grin on his face.

It was the smile that had warmed her instantly.

"Sakura-chan~! I- I'm seeking shelter from the snow-ttebayo!" His sing song voice shook a little as his teeth clattered together. He grabbed her hand and got up from the floor, brushing the snow collected on his hair and clothes. "It's sooooo cold outside, ne?"

Sakura helped brushing flecks of snow from the spot he missed in his hair. "I didn't realize it was snowing outside. This year winter is really cold." It was only three in the afternoon, yet the sky had already begun to darken with thick clouds and snow above.

"But Sakura-chan's place is so warm and cosy!" With all the snow gone, he sloppily discarded his drenched jacket and shoes (pointedly ignoring his Sakura-chan's deadly glare) and headed to her living room and deposited himself straight away under her kotatsu table. The blonde shinobi gave a shiver of pleasure and purred in contentment. "Maaaa, I can feel my toes again, Sakura-chan!"

She let a smile creased her eyes and curved her lips up at the inane exclamations Naruto was making as she hung Naruto's jacket on a hanger and kicked his shoes into its supposed place. Seriously, despite having saved Konoha and the whole world, he could still be such a boy sometimes, she thought, a little exasperated, yet a little more content that he had still remained as such.

As he curled up nicely like a cat under the kotatsu blanket, Sakura went back to her kitchen. He couldn't see very well from under the table, but he could hear some of her movements. He let the sounds of her activities drifted over him, thinking how comfortable they were to his ears. He never knew before that the sound of domestic activities could have such soothing effect on a person (there certainly wasn't anything soothing come from them when he was doing them himself).

Soon enough (and predictably enough), he felt his eyes drooping. The warmth from the kotatsu table was drowsing him. Yet, he didn't want to fall asleep. It would be another moment he lost from spending time with Sakura-chan, especially inside her home, the sanctuary he couldn't come often enough despite how frequent both his planned and impromptu visits were. Every moment with Sakura-chan was precious, and if life had taught him anything, it was to cherish every moment he had with the ones he loved.

Despite his resolve to stay awake, his mind wasn't cooperating. If felt comfortable to sleep here on the floor even more than in his own bed. It felt safe.

It felt right.

And then his eyes were closed.

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><p>"Naruto." He heard a gentle voice and felt a gentle touch on his arms. He felt as if his eyes had been glued shut together. He felt heavy, like his body had turned into lead. His throat was parched and it left a bitter taste it his mouth. He let out an unintelligible groan as he felt a pair of hand gently, yet insistently shake him from his slumber.<p>

"Wake up." Sakura softly admonished her knuckleheaded blonde baka. "If you sleep like this, you'll have a headache." It was probably too late for the warning anyway. Although, admittedly, she took a bit longer than she thought in the kitchen, and when she returned, she already found him asleep, looking so innocent and peaceful that she couldn't find it in her to wake him.

And so she let him sleep, careful to be very quiet as she busied herself in the kitchen. _Poor Naruto_, she thought. Lately, since becoming the hero of the village (and of the entire world), he was wanted everywhere by everyone, and it became too rare for him to find moments to slack or goof off like he did in the past, and sometimes, it made her worried for him that he wouldn't get enough to eat, that he wouldn't get enough rest.

While Naruto's obstables to his dream were his own to overcome, she would always find a way to help him in her own way, even if it was only just small, insignificant things. After all, didn't someone tell her that it was the strength of her feelings that count? She had promised herself she would always be there for him.

That was why, as he habitually rubbed his eyes from sleep as he sat up, she placed a small bowl, steaming with sweet smell, in front of him.

"Sakura-chan, this is…" Naruto turned his sleepy face to her, as he hadn't managed to shake his tiredness away completely.

"Oshiruko," she said simply, handing him a spoon, which he automatically took from her. "I remembered you ordering this when we went to dango shop together. You said you like this best, ne?"

Naruto being Naruto, he was surprised and touched that she actually remembered. He took the cup in his hand and dug right in. He felt rather thirsty than hungry, but he didn't care. As he took a bite, he expected the stinging sweetness to burn his already parched throat.

But that didn't happen. The oshiruko he tasted wasn't as sweet as he feared. It felt a little thinner, more watery than the way Sakura-chan usually preferred her dessert. The surprise made him looked up questioningly at her as she sat down opposite to him, placing her own bowl on the table

She smiled at him again. "I knew you'd be thirsty when you wake up, so I watered it down a little." Then, she pushed a plate of lightly grilled mochi towards him. "Help yourself, ne."

From that day onwards, Naruto would always, always prefer his oshiruko a little watered down.

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><p><strong>Author's note<strong>

Maybe I consumed too many sugary substances today, but I'm feeling positively coated in sweetness. Or maybe it is just from my head-canon Naruto being so sweet~! *insertfangirlscreamingmode*

Initially, I planned to write about Sakura's favourite food in this chapter, but when I was off searching for that info in Narutopedia, I stumbled across the fact that Naruto's second favourite food was oshiruko, which is a red bean soup dessert this can be eaten warm, very popular in Japan during winter months. A few impulse shots later, this chapter came into being.

A huge thanks to **Poppy Grave Dreams** for giving me the inspiration, and also an apology, since I actually ended up writing something different from your suggestion. I hope you still like it though :)

**Hanmac** also gave me another awesome idea in the comment as well. Big, big thanks to you as well! My muse is currently processing it. Let's see what actually comes out of this idea, ne?

For the other reviewers, I can't express my thanks enough for reading and commenting! If you have an idea and want me to give a go, please don't hesitate to let me know!


	3. Chicken Broth

**Sakura-chan's Homemade Meals**

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><p><em>3. Chicken Broth<em>

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><p>It was a universally known fact that Uzumaki Naruto was the strongest Ninja alive in the whole shinobi world. The legends all but portrayed him as invincible. It was close to the truth enough anyway. Lesser ninjas could only marvel at the sheer level of stamina he possessed. There wasn't a single shinobi in the whole world who could match him in that area. On top of that, considering his own skills, there wasn't a lot of shinobi who could even lay a finger on him (unless he allowed it). And with the recuperative power that the Kyuubi chakra bestowed upon him, he was practically immune to everything.<p>

Except food poisoning, apparently...

It was one Sunday morning when Naruto was rushed in by a stoically alarmed Sai, who methodically listed the food Naruto consumed last night at the boy's get-together hosted by Sai. And to summarize the disastrous event in one sentence, in his determined (bordering on desperate) attempt to be a gracious host, Sai had managed to overfeed the blonde ninja to whom self-restraint was an alien concept, and thus the current predicament.

Sakura wasn't sure if she should feel angry or sorry for them. Probably both (with a little touch of condescension, seriously, why were boys always like this?).

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><p>After making sure Naruto was admitted and properly taken care of, it took her two more hours to convince Sai that his friend would be fine in due time, and that his social standing (if he had any before) had not been too adversely impacted by this unfortunate (but expected) accident and then sent him off on his way. Then, retreating to her office, she slumped in her chair tiredly before noticing that someone had followed her inside.<p>

"Long night, Forehead?" Ino unceremoniously dropped a large pile of documents on her desk. "You had the night shift last night, yeah?"

Sakura nodded, her eyes still closed. "Yeah, my shift officially ended an hour ago, but I stayed to get Naruto admitted for food-poisoning."

"Then go home already!" Ino towered over her chair and hauled her best friend out of it. She took a look at the roster hanging on the wall and said, "Go get some rest now. You'll end up here again by the end of the night anyway."

Without further ado, she made a grab at Sakura's bag, pushed it into her hand, and ushered her out of the hospital promptly.

In the cold winter air, Sakura was once again thankful that her place was so close to the hospital. A walk of no more than ten minutes, with everything she needed on the way home. A slew of restaurants, shops, and even fresh food market made this area the most convenient place she could have picked. (Granted, she had to pay higher rent, but considering her pay grade, it would hardly bankrupt her anytime soon.)

With her thoughts turning to fresh food, she took a turn into the fresh food market. Her own fridge at home was nearly depleted and it was nigh time for restocking. Unthinkingly, she made her routine through the market as was her custom, until a sign caught her attention.

_Special price for whole chicken today! Freshest in the market!_

It was a typical thing to see in the market, of course, but something made Sakura stopped. A spark, an idea, entered her mind as she stood there watching the shop-owner calling to passerby, hoping to attract customers.

_Well, _Sakura thought to herself. _He just did._

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><p>When he awoke, Naruto found the new day to be nothing short of tedious.<p>

Firstly, he woke up to sharp pangs of headache and stomachache, the worst that he had had in years.

Secondly, before he could properly get his bearing, he found himself suddenly smothered by an overly concerned nurse (whom he didn't know) who tried to touch him at every opportunity that presented itself.

Thirdly, after he managed to rid himself of that perverted nurse (who promised him to return again later), he found out he wasn't allowed to eat _anything_.

Not even hospital food.

It was true that he despised hospital food (Kami knew why they thought patient should eat tasteless food, Naruto would never know), it was still better than being restricted with IV drip, which was Naruto's ultimate bane of existence. While Naruto was no glutton who was married to his food like Chouji, he liked his food as well as the next man (_real_ food anyway), and being prohibited to use his kami-given right to eat them was completely unfair, in his opinion.

And he was determined to let the world know it.

"I want some foooooood!" His howling could be heard from his room to the end of the corridor. "Food, food, food, food, fooooood!"

A few minutes later, an angry-looking Ino stormed through the door with murderous intent on her face.

"Keep it down, Naruto!" Ino raised her fist at her patient, with two other nurses holding her back. "You are disturbing other patients, idiot!"

"Gahhhhhh, I want to eat something!" the blonde shinobi yelled tiredly with a disappointed look on his face. He wasn't up to rolling and thrashing around just yet, as his strength wasn't fully recovered. "Can I have solid food, pleaseeeeee? And not hospital food! Some ramen-"

"Naruto, remember how you got yourself into this mess in the first place!?" Ino screeched at the knuckleheaded ninja. "From eating something you were not supposed to! Just like what you are asking to do, again!"

"But I'm sure that whatever poisoned me, it wasn't Ichiraku, and, and-"

"Stop pestering already, baka!" Ino would dearly like to box his ears, but she wasn't allowed to do that to a patient (even if she deemed it justified). That didn't stop her from being tempted to do it anyway and damn all the consequences. Well, anyone who ever had to nurse Naruto back to health had this urge to hit him at least once, and if they did not, well, they were probably beyond salvation.

"You'll be on IV drip for tonight, no way around it!" Ino concluded, taking his patient profile from the foot of his bed and jotting down a few extra notes before putting it back in place. "Now be a good boy and rest!"

And with that, she took off to finish her round at the hospital, leaving the blonde grumbling in her wake. He was tired and his stomach still hurt, but he still felt like eating something.

He tossed and turned for a while, ignoring his growling stomach and tried to think of something else. He wondered where Sakura-chan was, and why he hadn't seen her yet. Of course, if she were here, she would also be angry with his whining and childish displays. But if that got her to spend the time with him, he thought that was okay…

With that thought plus his own exhaustion, he was slowly drifted into slumber.

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><p>When Naruto woke up again, the sun was already setting and the room was almost dark since the lights were turned off. That didn't bother him though, since bright light would have hurt his eyes more. He sat up, feeling a little better from his aches until a growl echoed from his stomach.<p>

He sighed, and was almost startled when he heard a giggle from across the room. His eyes lit up instantly as that figure walked toward him in her white doctor coat.

"Sakura-chan~!" He croaked out from his parched throat, and as if by second-sight, she already had a glass of water and promptly handed it to him. He gratefully took it and gulped the content down eagerly, earning a chiding from Sakura for him to slow down.

When he finally put the glass down, she pulled a wheeled patient table over the bed and set a steaming bowl in the middle. Naruto salivated at the smell as he exclaimed excitedly.

"Chicken broth?! Yay~! Sakura-chan, you're the best!"

It had become a ritual that whenever any Team 7 member was admitted to hospital and restricted to IV drip or liquid diet, Sakura would make them the chicken broth so that they could have something that didn't taste like paper to tide them over until they could have _real _food (well, unless she was the one being admitted, but that rarely happened, seeing how protective Team 7 was of her, despite her occasional protests when they went too far).

For Naruto, he had always found Sakura-chan's chicken broth to be a heaven-sent, as it was a lot tastier than what they usually gave him at the hospital. He knew she always went out of her way to get extra herbs from the market to put in the broth, which she left to slowly simmer in a weird-looking pot for hours so that all the nutrients from the chicken and herbs were in the broth. Even Kakashi would attest to the taste of Sakura-chan's chicken broth (seeing how he always cleaned out his bowl the last time he was here).

"Help yourself, ne, Naruto. My shift is about to start now." Sakura turned to leave for her new shift when she felt her hand being grasped from behind.

She turned to see the blonde with his eyes downcast, his cheeks tinged with an almost imperceptible pink, before he whispered so quietly she almost couldn't hear him.

"S- Sakura chan," he stuttered. "Feed me."

"What!?" Sakura automatically retorted, as was her usual reaction to such request. While it wasn't the first time he made such a request of her, she still felt her face heating up. She fought to stop the reaction and replied immediately. "Your hands aren't hurt, you can do it yourself, baka! My shift is about to start anyway!"

Sakura caught the disappointed look in his face before he hid it with a smile. Naruto was always good at covering up his feeling with his signature smile, but since she was Sakura, she could tell straight away that it didn't reach his eyes. She felt a pang striking her like lightening.

It was guilt, she surmised, as she looked at his less than bright smile aiming at her. Naruto, as was his wont, was trying to cover up his own disappointment, so that it wouldn't bother her. He was trying to hide the longing he felt, but since she was Sakura, she could tell straight away what he was feeling. He was feeling weak, and maybe even in pain, and just like a child, he reached out to her for comfort.

_Would she deny him that?_ She asked herself.

With no hesitation, she grabbed a chair and sat down next to him, much to his surprise. She grabbed the spoon and took the lid off the bowl while Naruto could do nothing but stare at her.

"J- Just this once, alright?!" she said, her voice a pitch higher than she intended. "Open your mouth already!"

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><p>Sakura decided that it was totally worth it to see his blue sky eyes lit up so brilliantly, and to see simple happiness oozing from him being with every mouthful he took from her hand.<p>

Even if she ended up being half an hour late to her shift and had to endure another hour of lecture from her Shishou with threats of pay cut if she was ever late again.

Totally worth it.

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><p><strong>Author's Note<strong>

_My duties as inquisitor took me away from writing the new chapter, so I make no apologies_.

LOL I just wanna try and say that and hopefully look cool.

For those who didn't get it, a new game called 'Dragon Age: Inquisition' was released toward the end of November, and I've been hooked since. Between real life work and gaming duties, I completely neglected this chapter.

(Please forgive me T-T)

That, and I also ran into a bit of writer's block. I'm not sure how I managed to push this chapter out, so if it is not good, please comment so I can improve on writing quality! I would really appreciate constructive criticism so I can improve as a writer.

Also, I'm running out of ideas for the new chapters! Please, please, please help give me some ideas for Chapter 4! Help critically, desperately needed now! Especially when the news of new Naruto the last movie doesn't help to inspire me at all!

And before I forget, thank you all who commented, faved and followed! Love you guys! You make me happy!


	4. Omu-Rice

**Sakura-chan's Homemade Meals**

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><p><em>4. Omu-rice<em>

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><p>After a three-day mission with Shikamaru and Kiba, Naruto returned to his apartment with aching feet. Sure, the mission itself was simple and straightforward with no surprises, but Kami, why did it have to be so far? The walk to and from the place itself was enough to destroy his nin-sandal three times over, literally (by the way, he needed to get a new pair urgently, considering how thin the sole had become).<p>

He could not help but think about the fact that in less than three minutes, he'd be home. He thought about how it would feel to have a hot shower on his aching muscles and to have his own mattress under his sore body, and quickly hastened his steps. When he reached his apartment, he fumbled with the key and in mere seconds, he opened the door to his home…

Only to find it completely flooded…

That night, various Konoha citizens swore they could hear a long scream of 'hehhhhhh' echoing from somewhere.

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><p>So it was that at two in the morning, Sakura opened the door to find Naruto standing in front of the door, sheepishly asking for a place to stay for the night, and before she could threaten to pummel him, he rushed out an explanation of what happened to his apartment.<p>

"You left your kitchen tap running for three whole days!?" Sakura repeated incredulously the summarized version of what Naruto had just told her after she invited him into her living room.

"Yep." Was Naruto's simple reply. "But it wasn't intentional, I swear!" He hastily added after seeing a dark scowl on his beloved teammate's face. "I'll call the technician-san to fix my place first thing tomorrow, I swear!"

With a sigh and then an irrepressible yawn, Sakura wearily answered. "The spare futon and blanket is in the closet." Then with her eyes half-closed, she stalked back to her room, not paying attention to the sound of Naruto happily yelping and crashing his way to find his futon in her storage closet.

Naruto watched Sakura burrowing her way back into the warm cocoon of blanket and settled into sleep as he laid out the spare futon and grinned happily. His previous tiredness already forgotten and there was only giddiness left. It was the first time he was sleeping over at Sakura-chan's place! He thanked Kami fervently for making him forget to turn off that stupid tap as he settled in his futon, wishing it was as high as Sakura-chan's mattress so he could stare at her face as he fell asleep.

And then, he fell asleep.

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><p>When he had woken up again, it was nine in the morning.<p>

He rubbed his eyes as he sat up, feeling that he was in an unfamiliar place. Then, as he remembered where he was, his groggy eyes brightened instantly. He shot out of his futon on the floor and looked to the bed in the center of the room.

And he found Sakura-chan still sleeping in it.

It must be her day off today, Naruto grinned. He knew she liked to sleep in as much as anyone else, but unfortunately, with her career as an always in-demand medic ninja, she rarely got the chance to do so. This was why he tried to never disturb her in the morning of her days off.

While Naruto knew he was a pervert at heart, he never considered himself a stalker… until now, that was. All he wanted to do was staring at her sleeping face, how peaceful and childlike she looked with only her face was the only thing appearing from underneath the blanket with the halo of pink hair surrounding her face. Her forehead (that she thought was wide and ugly, the fact he utterly disagreed with) was smooth and half-covered with her bang. He wanted to reach out and brushed them aside to keep them out of her eyes. He lifted his hand tentatively and then…

His stomach growled…

Very loudly…

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><p>Sakura was woken by a strange smell.<p>

At first, in her sleepy state, she didn't want to care. She buried her face into her pillows and curled herself into a ball. But then, as she became more aware, she realized that she was smelling something burnt.

Then she remembered who she let in her home last night.

Faster than lightening, Sakura shot out of bed and ran straight into the kitchen. As she dreaded, she found her kitchen in a state of mess (a complete understatement, in Sakura's opinion) with pots and pans strewn all over the kitchen floor, and the one on the stove had something inside it that looked mysteriously black and was currently caught on fire. On the counter, there were remnants of eggshells and various other veggies all abound. Naruto was also there, running around uselessly from place to place, unsure of what to do first.

As if sensing her murderous intent, he suddenly stopped, then he slowly turned to face her.

"H- heh… Sakura-chan…"

"SHANNAROOO!"

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><p>After properly 'chastising' Naruto (a complete understatement, in Naruto's opinion), Sakura made Naruto clean up all the mess he made.<p>

"What were you thinking?" Sakura rambled irately as she watched Naruto clean up his mess while putting things back into places herself. "Didn't you remember what happened when you tried to cook at Kakashi-sensei's place?"

Naruto tried to laugh it off nervously. He did remember. Even to this day, Kakashi-sensei never allowed him to visit his home again after he almost accidentally set the Icha-Icha books on fire. The Sixth Hokage said he was still traumatized by the experience. The old, perverted liar…

"Sorry, Sakura-chan. I just thought I'd cook for you, since it's your day off and everything."

Sakura wanted to stay mad at him, but with his admission of wanting to cook for her, she felt a warmth slowing rising in her chest and a blush rising to her cheeks. On top of that, he had the gall to look so contrite with that lost-puppy look in his eyes to go with his whiskered face. Even though he ruined her lazy Sunday morning, she couldn't even stay mad at him. Damn it!

When he saw that she was quiet, Naruto became even more flustered. "I'm sorry Sakura-chan! I just thought I want to make something nice, like that omu-rice you like at the restaurant down the street. It looked easy and everything, and…"

Then, his stomach growled again.

Sakura couldn't help it anymore, she laughed and laughed despite his protests. She fell on the floor and laughed even harder when his stomach continued to growl continuously, noisily demanding nourishment.

So, after she had her fill of laughing, she found Naruto sitting in a corner, grumbling dejectedly of how she was damaging his man pride and some such nonsense. She tapped him lightly on his shoulder, and when he looked up, she offered him her hand.

"Come on," she said with a smile that was warmer than the summer sun in this winter air. "I'll teach you, okay?"

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><p><em>Ten minutes later<em>

"Don't use kunai to mince the chicken, Naruto-Baka!" Sakura hissed at the clueless blonde. "There's a perfect good kitchen knife I gave you! Use it!"

"Mou, Sakura-chan, what's the difference? It won't taste any different!" He argued back cheerfully. "It's easier to hold the kunai than the kitchen knife dattebayo~!"

*INSERT A SMACKING NOISE*

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><p><strong>Author's Note<strong>

Haha, no actual successful dish in this chapter. Maybe Naruto will need to take a few more cooking lessons before he can actually make the omu-rice.

Big, big thanks to **namikazi fan**, **Iron Monkey Fist**, **SaiyanWarrior200**, **Poppy Grave Dreams **and **Kumikosan4** for reviewing! Those words of encouragement really makes me happy and they are a big source of motivation for an aspiring writer such as myself. And to **SaiyanWarrior200**, I have to say I really did try to think of something Naruto could cook well for Sakura, but my muse doesn't seem to want that to happen. So, here is this chapter instead. I hope you won't be disappointed with it!

Thanks to everyone else who faved and followed this story as well. I would love to hear from you guys as to what you think of this story, but I understand if you're too busy otherwise! Hopefully, I'll get to hear your comment when you have time!


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